


Just Shut Up And Dance

by Whirlwind



Category: Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Background Brotzly, DrummerWolf, F/M, Rated T for swearing, wedding crashing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-17
Updated: 2019-09-17
Packaged: 2020-10-20 15:23:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20677604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whirlwind/pseuds/Whirlwind
Summary: When wedding crashers show up at her brother’s wedding, Amanda makes some unlikely new friends.





	Just Shut Up And Dance

**Author's Note:**

> This idea popped into my head last week and somehow just seemed really fitting for the characters.

Amanda ran her fingers through her mussed hair as she stepped down off the makeshift stage and exhaled a slightly tired, but content huff of air. Having to temporarily fill in for the band's perpetually late drummer at her brother's wedding reception had definitely not been in the original plans. After all, she had been the one to help plan this little shindig. Todd and Dirk had very different ideas on what they wanted, so she had to act as a sort of mediator to find compromises that fit both their tastes.

The band has been Todd's choice, old friends from back when he toured around with his band 'Mexican Funeral'. Which probably explained why, though quiet good, the hired musicians weren't all that reliable. But filling in last minute had actually been pretty fun. Though she could do without the thin layer of sweat that now coated her skin and caused her black dress to cling a little more than she'd like it to.

In need of a cool down, Amanda made her way over towards the open bar to indulge herself in some well earned drinks. As she crossed through the collection of chatting people to get there, she spotted an interesting looking foursome standing around laughing with beers in hand. They were quite the cast of characters, she observed, taking in their appearance. They looked far more suited for a biker wedding or something, dressed in their black leather attire, than well... whatever style wedding you would describe this one. Weirdo chic maybe? Honestly, who was she to judge? She too fit into that category to some extent.

Nevertheless, these rowdy individuals did not exactly look like they belonged here. Amanda knew most of Todd's friends and she knew they weren't any of his. As for Dirk, he had some pretty out there friends, but these boys didn't exactly fit that bill. Sure they seemed a little strange, but not the kind of strange that would be besties with Dirk Gently. So in Amanda's opinion, this really only left one other option.

Wedding crashers.

Given that the reception was taking place outdoors, it wouldn't be that hard to sneak into if someone wanted. And she knows she didn't see them at the wedding, she would have definitely remembered them. Her gut instinct was loudly confirming this theory of hers. But still, she could be wrong. Maybe they really were friends of Dirk's, or obscure old acquaintances of Todd's she'd never met. It was possible. She doubted it. But rather than make a fool of herself if she was wrong by outright calling them out on it, she'd do something a little more fun instead. Let them be the ones to do it for her.

With her game plan set, she smoothly strode right through the middle of the foursome, towards the bar they were hanging out by. She gave a easy knock against the counter to get the bartender's attention and flashed him a quick smile as she requested her beverage. 

"So, how do you guys know the happy couple?" She asked casually as she turned back around towards the group, leaning her hip against the counter as she waited for the bartender to get her drink together.

The man sporting a white mohawk and glasses eyed her curiously, eyes sweeping over her to get a better sense of who he was dealing with, before he gave his answer.

“Old friends of the groom.” He drawled smoothly, taking an easy puff of his cigarette.

Amanda bit back her smirk at his small blunder. Tripping them up might be easier than she'd thought. She placed a hand on her hip and tipped her head slightly, doing her best not to give away anything in her voice. “Which one?”

Before he couldn’t formulate an attempt at a appropriate response, the youngest and most energetic member of the group decided to chime in for him.

“Uh, the funny looking one!?”

His uncertain half question, half answer response only continued to give them away. An amused huff of air escaped Amanda's lips at his reply and she shook her head. “Yeah, that doesn’t exactly narrow it down.”

The other two fellows, a long haired guy with circle tattoo around his eye, and one sporting an interesting flannel/beanie combo, looked at each other, then to the mohawked man, who appeared the leader of sorts of this unique little foursome. He took another slow drag of his cigarette before responding.

"He means Todd."

At first Amanda was surprised and she quickly began to mentally scold herself for having hastily jumped to conclusions. But then she catches sight of a discarded invitation lying on the ground, partially peaking out from underneath a bush, easily in the eye line of the bespectacled man in front of her. She noticed Dirk's name was obscured by the foliage, but not Todd's. A smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. He was a resourceful one, she'd give him that. She'd might as well keep playing along.

"Yeah, and I'm his cousin." Offered the man with the circle tattoo.

"Is that right?" Amanda mused as she raised up a curious eyebrow.

The other boys nodded in some form of agreement, some more convincing than others with this new line of story they had weaved up for themselves.

"That's strange, because both Todd's parent are only children..."

Technically that was a lie. They had an aunt on their father's side of the family. But they didn't know that, which made it the perfect trap.

"And I should know, since I'm Todd's _sister_.” Amanda had a grin plastered on her face and a hand placed on her hip as she dropped that little bombshell on them.

Three of the boys seemed at a loss for what to do now, but strangely enough, their leader didn't. He conceded to her with a nod of respect at her victory, he liked her fire.

Amanda heaved a dramatic sigh and threw up her hands. "Dude, if you guys are gonna crash a wedding, you could at least _try_ to know something about the married couple to avoid getting caught." She dismissively shook her head in mock disappointment. "This can't be your first rodeo."

At her phrasing, the youngest member frantically looked around as if afraid at any moment a bull would magically appear from somewhere around the corner. The man with the circle tattoo around his eye clapped the boy on the shoulder and lowly spoke something that managed to calm him down.

"People are usually too afraid to mess with us." The fellow with the glasses confessed with a half shrug, his voice slightly tinged with something akin to crestfallen, that caught her a little by surprise.

"Yeah, why weren't you?"

Amanda pondered the interesting question, asked by the youngest member, over for a moment. Everyone else at the party had done well to avoid them, so why not her? Why had she instead thought to approach this crazy little group of strangers before her, when she could have just as easily asked Todd or Dirk whether they had been invited or not?

"I mean sure, you guys look a little scary, but you seem fairly harmless. Kinda like a Milk Snake.”

“Did she just call us a milkshake?” The flanneled man asked, mildly confused and Amanda shook her head.

“Milk Snake.” She reiterated, emphasizing the difference.

“People are afraid of them because they look a lot like the venomous Coral Snakes. But in reality, they’re actually pretty chill unless provoked."

The four of them stared at her with a peculiar expression and Amanda immediately regretted her weird tangent about snakes. Damn Discovery Channel. Why had she decided that it was a good idea to watch that last night when she couldn't sleep? She mentally groaned at her own awkwardness.

A beat passed before one of them finally spoke up, this time it was the long haired man.

"That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said about us."

Amanda let out a small surprised laugh at the genuineness of his statement. Boy were they weird, but she was already developing quite a fondness for them.

"So, who are you guys anyway?"

The group grinned and their leader took a step forward to make introductions.

"I'm Martin. He's Vogel and that there is Cross and Gripps."

They all shot her some form of acknowledgement; a wave, a casual half salute, a nod and she tipped her head to them in return.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Amanda. So, you boys wanna another drink?"

"You mean you ain't kickin' us out?" Martin asked her, brows raised up in surprise.

Amanda picked her now prepared drink up off the bar and glanced around for moment, then shrugged her shoulders. "Nah. You guys haven't harassed any of the guests or really made a scene, so I can't see why you couldn't stay. We're all here to celebrate and have a good time. So why not? Maybe just... try to keep a low profile if you can."

The guys looked a bit disappointed at that last part, as they exchanged looks with one another, but they still seemed to be considering the option. Though they never spoke out loud, it seemed like they had come to a decision.

"I ain't makin no promises, but we'll do what we can. Right boys?"

"You got it, boss!"

That was a good enough answer for Amanda.

Cross held up his beer to toast to them staying and everyone, including Amanda, thrust their drinks together. Beer and foam sloshed over the sides, and they downed the alcohol with a satisfying flourish.

With the return of its original drummer, the band had once again started up playing music, which did not go unnoticed by the boys.

"I love this song! Let's dance!" Vogel shouted, with one fist pumping up in the air, bouncing up in down in uncontainable excitement as he rushed onto the dance floor.

"I'm a dancing machine!" Gripps declared following after his friend.

"We're gonna destroy that dance floor!" Crossed added before he too joined them.

Amanda chuckled and shook her head. So much for them keeping a low profile. Oh well. Hopefully Todd and Dirk would forgive her for this when they eventually caught wind of it. But for now, it was probably best she keep an eye on them. Her and Martin exchanged a glance before heading over to the others, who were already dancing wildly about.

They danced (some more than others) like that for a number of songs, but when the music switched over to something far more docile in tone, the boys loudly acknowledged their displeasure in the shift in sound.

"Boo! Slow stuff!" Vogel pouted, stomping his feet.

"Hate slow stuff. Need to move!" Cross huffed, glaring pointlessly at the sound system as if it might magically emit different music than the song that the band was currently playing.

"My feet don't like this. Not one bit!" Gripps added, crossing his arms over his chest.

Disappointed, they retreated back to the bar. Amanda however, continued to linger there on the dance floor. She looked at all the happy couples out there, pulling their special someones in close and gently swaying to the rhythm of the music. It had been ages since she last slow danced with someone, probably not since high school and even that had been brief. She often liked to claim that she was to punk for it, but that was a lie.

She spotted Todd and Dirk out on the floor, playfully bickering as they clumsily (mostly on Todd's end) danced. Her brother caught sight of her and stopped a moment to shoot her a wave. Dirk, briefly confused by why they had suddenly stopped, followed Todd's eye line towards Amanda, and he too enthusiastically waved in her direction. She smiled and returned the gesture back to the newlyweds.

Though she didn't care to admit it, deep down she wanted that too. Something like they have. She was still young and had plenty of time, but part of her wondered if she'd ever find it. She didn't exactly have the most stellar dating record. Her last relationship had been a real dumpster fire of a situation. Literally. The guy had accidentally set fire to the dumpster outside his apartment and left Amanda to deal with the cops after he ran off.

"Somethin' wrong?" She heard Martin ask from behind, pulling Amanda out of her thoughts.

"Huh? No, I just- I was just thinking about something.”

Her vision momentarily drifted back to the couples again, a small longing sigh unintentionally escaped her lips. She shook her head, clearing her mind of such silly notions.

When she turned back to face him, she found him holding his hand out to her. Amanda glanced down at his outstretched palm, then back up at his face in mild confusion at the gesture. She tilted her head, puzzled.

"You looked like you wanted to dance." He offered simply, with a casual shrug.

She hadn't been expecting that. She started to open her mouth to deny it, but stopped herself as she contemplated the offer.

He was exactly her type. Handsome. Older. Looked like trouble. So she most certainly should have gone running for the hills to avoid yet another loser to add to her already long list. But there was something that was different about him that she couldn't put her finger on. Something akin to a quiet gentleness in his eyes that pulled her in.

Amanda eventually caved to her desires, giving as casual half shrug to avoid seeming eager, but smiled as she slipped her hand into his and they stepped further out onto the dance floor.

The height difference between them took a moment to get used to, luckily she had worn her heeled boots which helped make it a bit easier. But they eventually settled in comfortably and quickly found an easy natural rhythm with one another.

"That was some pretty impressive playin' up there earlier, Drummer Girl."

Amanda's face suddenly seemed a bit warm, and she felt strangely embarrassed by his praise. "Oh, you saw that huh?" She asked sheepishly, glancing anywhere but at his face. "It's just a hobby. It's not like a career in music would ever actually _go_ anywhere."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Who says?"

She momentarily stopped to look up at him. "Uh, everyone. My parents. My friends. My brother knows first hand how tough the music business can be. That's why he quit. Well, that an because he was kinda an asshole and sold their equipment."

"If you want somethin', don't give up on it. If you wanna be a drummer, be a drummer."

He was so causal about it, that it almost annoyed her.

"It's not that simple, Martin."

"Isn't it?"

Her mouth fell open, her mind searching for a retort, but she couldn't seem to find one. Maybe he was right. Was she letting her fear of picking the risky option keep her on a mundane path she really didn't want to be on, simply because it was the safer choice? Had she unknowingly been letting fear rule her life? It was something to think about.

"Just shut up and dance." Amanda muttered, which earned her a chuckle from Martin but he followed her orders.

A comfortable silence fell between them as they continued. Amanda couldn't help notice he was a much better dancer than she would have ever pegged him for. The fact he hadn't stepped on her toes even once was a relief to her feet, which were quickly starting to hit their limit in these boots.

Feeling a sense of now or never, she grasped the leather fabric of his jacket between her fingers and pulled him down towards her, pressing her lips against his. He was only momentarily caught off guard, but recovered quickly, returning the kiss back fully.

Out of breath, she pulled back in need of air and glanced upward to catch his intense blue eyes and content expression. As the rest of the world finally came back into focus, she suddenly realized that the music had long since stopped and that the band had gone on break. The fact that no one was dancing any longer became quickly apparent as many eyes found themselves on the duo. She awkwardly cleared her throat, doing her best to cover up the blush that was slowly creeping its way into her cheeks and briefly patted her hand against his chest before taking a step back.

"Well then, we should probably be getting back to the boys." She spoke, matter-of-factly as she turned on her heel in the direction of the bar. An amused noise slipped from Martin's lips as he shoved his hands in his pockets and followed behind.

But before they could rejoin the guys, the lead singer of the band playing at the reception approached Amanda to talk. Martin laid back some to give them a bit of privacy, but remained close enough to still see how the interaction would play out. 

"Hey, I just wanted to say we really appreciate you filling in before."

Amanda nodded. "Yeah, no problem."

He ran a hand through his red hair and exhaled an exasperated breath, clearly trying to reign in some kind of deep seeded annoyance festering in his chest.

"That drummer of ours, as good as he is, is an alcoholic flake whose late to every single gig we book. And honestly, the rest of us our fed up with his shit. So-"

He paused and Amanda watched as he reached down into his pants pocket for his wallet and pulled out a business card from it, holding it out to her with two fingers.

"If you're ever interested in joining a band, give us a call."

Amanda blinked in surprise and reached out to pluck the card from him. She gave a silent nod to the man and he proceeded to return to his fellow band mates across the way. Had that really just happened? Did a legit band just offer her a chance to play with them?

As she stood there, staring down in disbelief at the card in her hand, Martin bumped his shoulder up against hers and grinned knowingly.

"See. Told you."

"Shut up." She muttered affectionately, bumping him back as they went to rejoin the boys. 


End file.
